Click here for full immediate access to a database that contains almost all CORI Massachusetts Background Check data.

Btw- inside this database you can see data on ANY person!

CORI stands for Criminal Offender Record Information. It is a record of all Massachusetts criminal history, including any time anyone was arraigned in court on a criminal charge. You must know: No matter what the final outcome of the charge was if you had any arraigned in court on a criminal charge you in the cori!

A lot of employers are allowed to do CORI checks on people who are applying for jobs. The employer asks the Massachusetts Criminal History Systems Board for a copy of the criminal record.

Most employers will get to see only convictions and cases that are still open. The exceptions are things like nursing homes. In those cases they will be allowed to see charges that were not convicted of.

Public housing authorities are also allowed to see CORI, but they can only see convictions and open cases.

Yes. It is a good idea to request your own CORI, especially if you are not sure what is on your record. Once you get your CORI, you should look it over to make sure it is accurate. If you think there are mistakes, you should contact the probation department of the court that handled the charges you think are wrong. Btw- There is a fee to the cori report, but if you cannot afford it, you can fill out an Affidavit of Indecency to have the fee waived.

The original cori report is very hard to understand and you would need a professional help from a lawyer who has experience with criminal histories to understand it.

I think it is important to get help understanding it so you know exactly what is on your record. Or you can go to this CORI Massachusetts Background Reports website and see your data there. On that website the data is easy to understand. Bear in mind that in spite of the fact that this data is updating on a daily basis it is not perfect as an original cori of course. In the cori check you can also check to see whether the convictions on your record are misdemeanors (less serious crimes) or felonies (more serious crimes).

Employers also cannot ask about misdemeanors where the date of conviction or end of incarceration, whichever is later, happened five or more years ago, with no convictions since then.

You also do not have to tell employers about delinquency cases, or cases in which you were a "Child in Need of Services" (CHINS), as long as the case was not transferred to Superior Court for criminal prosecution.

All the employers are not allowed to ask you about arrests, detentions, or any violations of law from which no conviction resulted.

In other words, you do not have to tell an employer about charges that you were not found guilty of.

Good news: When a record is sealed it means that people outside the criminal justice system cannot see it. The police and the courts can still see it, but for almost everyone else it is like the charge does not exist.

Some Massachusetts criminal records can be sealed. If they are sealed, most employers will not be able to see them when they do a CORI check.

Btw- You do not have to tell employers about criminal records that have been sealed!

If it has been 10 years since all of your misdemeanor convictions have closed and 15 years since all of your felony convictions have closed, then your criminal record is eligible for sealing.

Definition: A case closes on the last day of prison, parole, or probation, whichever came last.

You apply to have convictions sealed by filling out a form and mailing it to the Office of the Commissioner of Probation in Boston. (Telephone: 617-727-6558)

There is no waiting period, but you will have to show that there is a "compelling governmental interest," or a good reason, to seal the record. A good reason could be that the charges are preventing you from finding employment or housing.

You should create a good file on yourself with letters from people who can explain why it is unlikely that you will commit a crime again, and that you have become a productive member of society.

These letters could be from employers, probation officers, clergy, counselors, treatment people, or anyone whose opinion would be respected. You can then use these letters when you are applying for jobs.

I recommend going to this CORI Massachusetts check website and see the cori data available there.

Btw- inside this database you can see data on ANY person!